With Jason Varitek announcing his retirement from the Red Sox and Major League Baseball, we look back two decades to his two years with the Cape Cod Baseball League.

This 1993 photo found Varitek finding his focus as the Hyannis Mets catcher.

After an uneven opening to the season, he finished as the league's MVP and batting champ, winning the Thurman Munson Award, hitting .371, 3 homeruns and 22 RBI.

The picture was taken by then-Patriot sports reporter Tom E. Curran, now of Comcast SportsNet's “Quick Slants” and other outlets offering his deep knowledge of Patriots of a different sort. Tom shared on our Facebook: “I remember he didn't have a car and was late getting to our interview because he needed a ride.”

Varitek was also in negotiations with the Minnesota Twins at the time, which would fall apart and lead to his career with the Red Sox. He’s already in the Cape Cod Baseball League Hall of Fame (Class of 2002), destined for the Red Sox Hall of Fame and, as the catcher of a record four no-hitters and two World Series Championship teams, has the credentials for Cooperstown.

We thank him for the great years, here and at Fenway.

DS II

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